Review: Hmm. I’m having a difficult time trying to process by thoughts on Lynsay Sands’ “The Husband Hunt.” It is the final book in a trilogy about the three Madison sisters. Christiana found her true love in “The Countess” and Suzette in “The Heiress” – two books that actually take place at the same time. I love both of these books. They were extremely funny and sweet. I was so anxious for the third book, especially since Lisa has been pining for Robert since the start of the series. While parts of the story surpassed my expectations, others made me want to yell loudly (and throw things).

“A Rogue by Any Other Name” by Sarah MacLean (historical, Avon, March 2012, $7.99, 400pp)

There are books I like, books I love, books I hate, books I enjoy, books that move me, etc. Then, there are those books with which I connect on such an intense level that they are destined to hold positions of honor on my exalted shelf of romance-novel favorites. I can’t even pretend that Sarah MacLean’s “A Rogue by Any Other Name” isn’t already firmly ensconced on that shelf. From the moment that Bourne, its hero, appeared (on page 1, I believe), I was captivated. I know that I mentioned on Twitter the first time I read this book that Bourne had conquered my heart and that he was vying for the title of favorite hero with Han Solo (from “Star Wars”), Devil Cynster (from Stephanie Laurens’ “Devil’s Bride”) and James Mallory (from Johanna Lindsey’s “Gentle Rogue”).

“Miss Hillary Schools a Scoundrel” by Samantha Grace (historical, Sourcebooks, February 2012, $6.99, 412pp): How do I talk about “Miss Hillary Schools a Scoundrel,” Samantha Grace’s debut historical romance? I don’t really know. I had a very difficult time reading this book. While it had a strong setup and characters I thought were great together (well, at first), the central source of conflict between the hero and the heroine was The Big Misunderstanding – ok, really The Big Misunderstandings that happened again and again and again. The story showed such promise but that promise was not realized.

Miss Lana Hillary is in her second season – and is still unwed. Her mother is obsessively worried that Lana has no prospects and is pushing less than desirable men at her daughter. Lana catches the attention of Lord Andrew Forest, a younger son of a duke who is rake, scoundrel and pleasure seeker. Yet, something about Lana calls to Drew, so much so that he cannot stay away from her – despite his brother’s explicit order to leave the innocent woman alone.

Review: “The Rogue Pirate’s Bride” by Shana Galen is the last of three books about the Harcourts, a family of French aristocrats that was pulled apart and devastated by the French Revolution. This one is the story of Sebastien Harcourt, a man who made his way in the world by becoming a privateer on the open ocean. Known as Captain Cutlass, Bastien has spent his life trying to forget his past and making a notorious name for himself. But, he meets his match in Raeven Russell, the daughter of an admiral in the British navy. Raised at sea, Raeven is no debutante. She is a woman on a mission – a mission to make Captain Cutlass pay for his sins.

From this moment that I started reading Kristen Callihan’s “Firelight,” I was hooked. I couldn’t resist the firestarting heroine and the deeply tortured hero finding true love in dark London. The mystery kept me turning the pages with gusto as I tried to figure out what possible ailment affected said hero, Lord Benjamin Archer and how it all might be resolved. Callihan kept me guessing with this riveting romance.

“How to Dance With a Duke” by Manda Collins (historical, St. Martins, January 2012, $7.99, 352pp)

Series: The Ugly Ducklings, book 1

Review: Miss Cecily Hurston has a big problem. Her father, Viscount Hurston, is in trouble. He is very sick, but is also the subject of some cruel rumors that suggest he may have killed his assistant, Will Dalton. Cecily wants to continue her father’s work with Egyptian antiquities to prove that Hurston had no hand in any scandalous behavior. However, no one is willing to help – especially not Will’s brother Lucas, Duke of Winterson.

I’ve read several of Jackie Barbosa’s historical novellas over the past several months. Her books are set during the Regency period, my favorite time period for historical romances, and they have an intense eroticism that titillates. As such, I jumped at the chance to review Barbosa’s recent release, “The Lesson Plan,” the first story in the Lords of Lancashire trilogy. While I have way too many books that I have committed to read, I could not resist reading this one as soon as it hit my inbox.